Since 3 May 2011, the port of Le Havre has been emphasizing a new dynamic focusing on the criteria of reliability, competitiveness and the service quality customers expect to receive.

At the end of 2011, and despite seeing the start of an upturn in the second half of the year (up 4% compared with the same period in 2010), overall tonnage processed at the Port of Le Havre reported a decline of 4% in relation to 2010.

Containerised traffic found its way back to growth over the course of the year (2.22 million TEU and 21.6 Mt that is 32 % all Le Havre port tonnage) but ended it by reporting a decline of 6% linked to the drop in trans-shipment (?28%). Poor results in the first quarter (483,000 TEU) were partly compensated for over the following months. At 559,000 TEU, the second quarter showed a distinct recovery and was up by 16% compared with the first quarter. The peak in activity was achieved in summer 2011 with 600,000 TEU. Although there was growth of 5.7% compared with the same period in 2010, the fourth quarter slowed somewhat with 576,000 TEU.For dry bulks, 2011 was notable for a reduction in tonnage to the tune of 10%, down to 3.1 Mt. This decrease is linked to

the 37% drop in coal traffic flows which correlates in particular with the clement spring and year end. In addition, strong growth in building materials was seen (sand, gravel and crushed stone), which grew by 59% to almost 1.3 Mt, along with cement traffic which was up 18% to 0.4Mt.

 This forum is a premier event where customs executives, government officials and commercial providers meet to explore emerging trends and requirements in cargo security. This year, the event will focus on the efficient use of security technology at borders.

“L-3 is pleased to support the WCO gathering of thought leaders by being the corporate sponsor for the second time,” said Thomas M. Ripp, president of L-3 Security & Detection Systems. “We have been making significant investments in new mobile inspection and radiation detection solutions for the industry’s most demanding cargo applications, including our recently announced CX-Mobile^™ G3 and CR-Mobile^™ offerings. These two next-generation products provide robust and high-throughput detection capability for customs and security personnel to confidently screen cargo at borders, ports and airport facilities.”

Paul Simpson, senior director of L-3 SDS’ cargo product line, will present a keynote address on border security strategies on Tuesday, March 6 at 10 a.m. (MYT) in the Renaissance Marriott – Ballroom A. L-3 SDS will also host a breakout session on Wednesday, March 7 at 12 p.m. (MYT) in the Renaissance Marriott – Function Room 5. Interested parties are invited to visit the L-3 SDS exhibit at Stand 20/21, or contact Christina Wee at Christina.Wee@L-3com.com to set up an appointment.

L-3 SDS offers both configurable products and customized solutions to address unique, state-of-the-art cargo requirements. L-3’s new third-generation CX-Mobile G3 brings high-energy cargo inspection to any location in a road-ready vehicle with the lowest life-cycle costs available. Its new CR-Mobile cargo radiation detection system combines the highest radiation detection performance possible with a very low false alarm rate. In addition, L-3 SDS offers a comprehensive portfolio of cargo platforms that includes the CX-Pallet^™, CX-Portal^™ and CX-Gantry^™. With the ClearView^™ Workstation, data from multiple X-ray systems, radiation detectors and a host of other sensors can be seamlessly integrated to maximize operator productivity and effectiveness.

This navigation channel to the North Sea is the access route for sea-going ships that have a draft of more than 14.3 metres. More and more of these ships come to Rotterdam because of the increase in scale and because the load factor of sea-going ships continues to grow.

The Maasgeul is 6 miles long and currently 500 to 600 metres wide. It is being widened by another 240 metres so that by the summer of 2012, large sea-going ships will be able to pass each other. Harbour master René de Vries announced this during the presentation of the nautical annual figures for 2011. The lower number of ships – 33,681 sea-going ships compared with 34,404 in 2010 – with an increase in throughput (from 430 to 435 million tonnes) points to that increase in scale and more heavily laden container ships.

The harbour master also explained that last year’s bad weather – there was significantly more wind and storm than in 2010 – had an adverse effect on the nautical figures of the port of Rotterdam. The number of serious accidents (16 compared to 15 in 2010) remained close to the same, but there was more bodywork damage (131 compared to 116). The harbour master qualified the figures: ‘If you are talking about 16 accidents for close on one million ship movements, then the port is still extremely safe.’

Nautical Efficiency Index

The average turnaround time of ships remained the same, with a reduction by one minute to 4.36 hours. The harbour master no longer wants to use this time as the method of assessing the work of the nautical service providers. There are so many other, uncontrollable factors that determine this time. The Port Authority is now working on the Nautical Efficiency Index, a standard for international shipping that determines whether the traffic process runs in accordance with the set schedule.

LNG

During the meeting, De Vries made a case for more national and international legislation for the use of LNG as a fuel for both sea-going ships and inland shipping. ‘Research shows that LNG provides an opportunity to make inland shipping and ocean shipping more sustainable with financial gains.’

The Rapiscan Eagle® R60 high speed rail scanner will efficiently scan around two hundred thousand cargo containers per annum as they travel at speeds of up to sixty kilometers per hour through the Eagle R60 into the Port of Rotterdam.

The Eagle®R60HS has been designed to help detect and identify a wide range of threats and suspect materials including contraband goods such as drugs and cigarettes. Using a high power 6 MeV X-Ray source, a clear and unambiguous x-image of even the densest rail cargo is produced, with a forty foot container x-rayed in 0.8 of a second.

Offering a high speed, efficient solution to cargo screening, containers do not have to be unloaded or diverted individually to a cargo inspection facility; instead they are screened during the normal movement of cargo, vastly increasing the speed of cargo throughput. Trains can be diesel, electric (overhead or rail).

Communications technology means that the R60 system is a fully automated operation without inspectors positioned on site, the resulting X-Ray image analysis is performed by trained operators, within an Inspection Office, in the heart of the Port some kilometres away from the scanner. The system requires only one person to monitor the screening process, with sophisticated operational and safety systems’ guaranteeing the solution is safe for the rail crew and drivers. This array of failsafe systems ensures that only cargo containers are scanned.

Mr. Ajay Mehra, Rapiscan Systems President, commented: “With an increased demand for x-ray cargo inspection systems that can efficiently scan trains whilst on the move, Dutch Customs continues to assert its position as a leader worldwide in best practices for cargo and vehicle inspection with the deployment of this ground-breaking technology. The ability for rail operators and security organisations to quickly assess rail cargo is vital to protecting rail infrastructure and the global supply chain. With its ultra-high speed throughput and superior threat detection capabilities, the Eagle R60 is an example of Rapiscan’s technical leadership and its ability to meet our customers’ most demanding requirements.”

The Eagle R-Series rail scanners have been well-received in the marketplace with Eagle R60, R60 High Speed and Eagle R90 systems, including dual track solutions having been sold to the US Department of Defence and a number of European customers for inspecting cargo at border crossings. The Eagle® R-series systems are able to scan cargo of different sizes and configurations, including single or double stacked containers, single or dual tracks, making them  ideal for the mixed rail car cargo at border crossings and seaports.